A house has been built in the village of Pernink in the Krusne Mountains in west Bohemia, Czech Republic. The house is located 820 metres above sea level near the German border in a valley which is defined by a wild water stream.

The client imposed a free brief right at the start of the design which evolved over a long period. The house represents a hybrid typology of a small residential retreat and a guest house with facilities for local skiing and nature hiking.

The form and scale of the house are largely defined by topography and the orientation towards views of landscape and towards sunlight. The prevailing western winds are tackled with a narrow gable end to minimise their impact.

A small budget and harsh local climate have determined a simple method of construction which has been buildable in two short building seasons.

The external walls are made of 500mm thick superinsulated prefabricated clay blocks, which are also used for the main loadbearing wall.

A sense of a cave like protection against climate is supported by the journey from entrance lobby to the upper living space which winds itself twice through this thick internal wall.

The floor to ceiling height differs in hierarchy with the staircase zone being of minimal height and the living space being increased to 3m, which strengthens the effect of the landscape entering the building interior through large glazed openings.

The materials used are of high constructional standard and are left in their natural appearance without further treatment – hand applied stucco renderings, masive wood, exposed concrete ceilings and floors and aluminium windows.

Click above for larger image

The heating is built within the floors and powered by gas, with additional option of wood burning stove in the living space. The client was in charge of organizing the construction herself with the final costs added to a complete sum of 100.000 EUR inclusive of the plot and internal fittings and furniture.

Comments

agree with a2104;
like a puppet house - look at the size of the room with the chinmey and the lc4.
i think space cd have been used more useful.
nevertheless, i like the outer look !

Vincent#1

It lacks the spacious refinement of Japanese minimalist architecture. I Mean, at least the pictures look somewhat tight or oppressive.

Btw. Look for the plugcontacts :) NOO!!
And the garden looks very East-European :)

peter

East-European? What does that even mean?

toby block

Out Of Place
(would look more appropriate on a small urban site)

Lee

in my (east-european) opinion this little house is a nice job. consequent and cool.

mcmlxix

I agree that the living space is too small. I don’t think it would harm the exterior…it would likely even lend visual interest…to add a 2 to 3 ft pop out the width of the living space. If this were done, the roof of it should be level with the roof of the stair side of the building and also set in 2 to 3 feet from the ‘east’ wall instead of flush.

Wanda

So where are the solar panels? That way you do not need to have wood heat unless it is extremely cold, and you have your own electric for lights and your appliances.